Prince Harry teases recreating iconic Princess Diana moment with John Travolta

Prince Harry enjoyed a star-studded night out in Beverly Hills yesterday, when he was presented with a special award by a Hollywood star who once shared an iconic moment with his late mother.  

Harry recalled one of Princess Diana's most memorable moments as he joined John Travolta on stage for the Legends of Aviation Awards – a ceremony that recognises achievements in the aerospace industry. 

It was the Duke of Sussex's first public outing since it was revealed his father, King Charles, would soon receive treatment for an enlarged prostate. 

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Presented with the award, Harry embraced the Grease actor before delivering his speech.

“This is nice,” he said, smoothing down the ribbon of his medal. “Thanks very much, Captain John. I was one-year-old when you danced with my mum. As you’ve told everybody here and continue to dine out on that probably every single night.”

The event he is referring to is when a 24-year-old Princess Diana was twirled around a dance floor by John Travolta, who was arguably at the peak of his career.

The iconic moment occurred when Diana and Prince Charles were on their official trip to the United States in November 1985 and were invited by the then President, Ronald Reagan, as guests to a gala dinner at the White House.

In an interview with Esquire Mexico in April 2021, John Travolta shed more light on the now legendary dance, calling it “like a dream” and a “magical moment.”

“Dancing was the easy part, but introducing myself to Diana in the proper way, conveying assurance, and asking her to be my dance partner was a complicated mission," he said. “The whole stage is like a dream. I go up to her, touch her on the shoulder, ask her to dance. She turns around and when she sees me she displays that captivating smile, somewhat sad, and accepts my invitation.”

"And there we were, dancing together like in a fairy tale. Who could imagine that something like this is going to happen to you one day? I was smart enough to register it in my memory as a very special, magical moment.”

Promising to have their very own special moment, Harry joked with the star, "Look at us now! It’s great. So if we’re not going to dance together, we’ll fly together.”

The Prince was named a Living Legend of Aviation in recognition of his role as an Apache helicopter pilot in two military tours in 2007 and 2012.

Harry described his time in the air while serving in Afghanistan as "being up in God’s playground."

Harry wasn’t the only royal in attendance – but it wasn’t Meghan Markle who accompanied him. Instead, the Duke of Sussex, suited and booted in traditional black tie, sat alongside Prince Mario-Max Schaumburg-Lippe, a German royal who is a cousin of Margrethe II, the outgoing Queen of Denmark who abdicated this week.

Prince Mario-Max tweeted a photo of the pair, writing “Congratulations To HRH Prince Harry for his VERY MUCH DESERVED Living Legends of Aviation Award.”

Announcing the award earlier this month, Living Legends of Aviation said, “Prince Harry is a humanitarian, military veteran, mental wellness advocate, and environmentalist. He has dedicated his life to advancing causes that he is passionate about and that bring about permanent change for people and places.”